Banu Qurayza: Difference between revisions

After the [[Battle of Ahzab]], the Prophet (s) and his army went to Banu Qurayza, and after fifteen days of siege they proposed a compromise and agreed on [[Sa'd b. Mu'adh]] as the arbiter. Contrary to what his tribe preferred, Sa'd ruled that male warriors of Banu Quraza be killed and their property be divided up among [[Muslim]] warriors. However, [[Sayyid Ja'far Shahidi]], a contemporary scholar and historiographer, has cast doubts on the accuracy of this account, because of inconsistencies in historical sources as well as certain external evidence. The reason for the Battle of Banu Qurayza was their cooperation with [[polytheists]] in the Battle of Ahzab.

According to historical sources, Banu Qurayza and [[Banu Nadir]] tribes were from the progeny of [[Aaron]], the brother of the [[Prophet Moses (a)]], who lived in and governed [[Yathrib]] before the migration of [[Aws and Khazraj]] tribes to the town. However, when the Jewish government of [[Yemen]] was defeated by the [[Christian]] king of [[Abyssinia]], Jews in Yathrib were also defeated by Khazraj in a battle, and since then, the town was governed by the Khazraj tribe.

In many historical sources, the Jewish tribes of Banu Qurayza and Banu Nadir are said to be from the progeny of Aaron the brother of the Prophet Moses (a). However, in some other sources, Banu Qurayza are said to be from the Judham clan in [[Palestine]] who converted to [[Judaism]] in the period of 'Adiya b. Samawa'al.

Allegedly, the Jews of Banu Qurayza lived in Yathrib before the migration of the Arabian tribes of Aws and Khazraj to the town. Thus, in the wake of Jewish-Roman wars in seventy, Banu Qurayza fled to [[Hijaz]] and inhabited Mahzur near Yathrib.

Along with other Jewish tribes, Banu Qurayza governed Yathrib. Allegedly, their commander was al-Qaytuwan or Fatyun who was a taxpayer to the [[Iran]]ian ruler, al-Zarih (in [[Bahrain]]). According to historical sources, when the Jewish government in Yemen was defeated by the Christian king of Abyssinia, the Jews of Medina were undermined. Finally, in a battle between Khazraj and the Jews, their commander was killed and Arabs overtook the town.

Because of the dominance of Arab tribes on Medina, many Jews left the city. It is also reported that near the emergence of Islam, Jewish tribes lived outside the city in their forts. In this period, Banu Qurayza had greater population and influence as compared to [[Banu Nadir]] and [[Banu Qaynuqa']]. They lived in the southeast of Medina and were mainly engaged in agriculture.

==The Battle of Banu Qurayza==

According to some authors, the only independent account of Banu Qurayza in Islamic sources is the one concerning Muslims' war with them in [[5 AH|5]]/626. Other accounts of their history and events appear as part of the history of Aws and Khazraj.

The Battle of Banu Qurayza allegedly occurred in late [[Dhu l-Qa'da]] and early [[Dhu l-Hajja]] in 5/April 627, and was the last conflict between Muslims and the Jews of [[Medina]]. According to Islamic sources, immediately after the [[Battle of Ahzab]] and the retreat of the enemies, the [[Prophet (s)]] raged a war against Banu Qurayza. Muslims besieged the forts and homes of Banu Qurayza for fifteen days, and then the Jews proposed a compromise and agreed on [[Sa'd b. Mu'adh]] as their arbiter.

[[Sayyid Ja'far Shahidi]], a contemporary scholar and historiographer, cites remarkable inconsistencies in historical sources as well as external facts such as the population of Medina and the Prophet's (s) kind character, and thereby, casts doubts over the accuracy of the account, and in particular, the massacre of six hundred to nine hundred people from Banu Qurayza. He characterizes the event as a myth fabricated by people of [[Khazraj]] in order to downgrade the status of [[Aws]] in the eyes of the Prophet (s).

In his ''al-Maghazi al-nabawiyya'', Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri (51/671-2 ; 124/741-2) refers to Sa'd b. Mu'adh's ruling and the Prophet's (s) endorsement of the ruling. However, he only confirms the killing of Huyayy b. Akhtab, the senior figure of [[Banu Nadir]] who encouraged Banu Qurayza to hostility towards the Prophet (s).

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*[[Battle of Banu Qurayza]]

*[[Banu Qaynuqa']]

*[[Banu Nadir]]

*The material for this article is mainly taken from {{ia|[[:fa:بنی‌قریظه|بنی‌قریظه]]}} in Farsi WikiShia.